The Meat Industry

Who were the 3 spanish explorers that brought livestock across North America?

1. Columbus

2. Cortez

3. De Soto

Which explorer brought livestock to the english colonies?

Lord Delaware

Who was America’s first meat packer? How did he pack meat?

William Pynchon

• Salted pork bellies in barrels, of which preserved them

Where did Uncle Sam originate from?

A meat packer by the name of Sam Wilson, who stamped barrels of pork/beef that were shipped to US soldiers during the War of 1812 with his name (i.e., Uncle Sam’s pork/beef)

Who proposed Electrical Stunning? Why?

Benjamin Franklin

• Claimed that electricity made the meat “uncommonly tender”

Which modern day city was first to be known as “Porkopolis?” Why?

Cincinnati

• First meat packing plant location

Which city consequently became the US’ meat processing hub? When?

Chicago, 1861

When did the Railroad reach Chicago? What did this allow for?

1852-1865

• Allowed for stockyards and slaughter to move west

• Cattle drives also moved south → north and east → west

Which college was the first to have a meat facility?

University of Minnesota

The 1900’s was a period of ___ legislation and _____

Food Safety, Implementing Inventions

When was Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle written?

1904

What was the primary message of The Jungle? What happened instead?

Intended as a callout for better workers rights, but ended up exposing health concerns in meat processing facilities

What occured in 1906, shortly after the publishing of The Jungle?

The Meat Inspection Act was passed

• Mandatory and rigorous for meat facilities

What caused the collapse of the U.K.’s beef industy in 1996?

BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy)

• Mad Cow Disease

When was BSE found in the US?

2003 on Christmas Day

• Caused mammalian-to-ruminant feed bans and prohibited SRM’s (Specific Risk Materials) from being used in feeds and fertilizers.

When did the FDA approve of beta agonists being used in swine and beef feeding? What did it cause?

2005

• Caused a major shift in red meat yield

What is Vertical Integration?

A strategy that allows a company to mainstream by taking direct ownership of various stages of production

• Could theoretically own the same piglet from birth to slaughter

What is a Fed animal?

Young animals managed and fed for meat production

• Steer, heifer, barrow, gilt, wether, ewe

How is the value of a Fed animal’s carcass determined?

• Quantity (weight, yield)

• Quality (maturity, marbling)

What is a Non-Fed animal?

Mature animals harvested for meat after they are no longer productive for a specific purpose (breeding, work, milking, etc)

• Bull, cow, boar, sow, ram, ewe

How is the value of a Non-Fed animal’s carcass determined?

Quantity ONLY (weight, yield)

What are the 3 distinct processes used in the meat industry?

1. Slaughter or harvest / carcass chilling

2. Fabrication / minimal processing

3. Further processing

What is the slaughter process?

The time the animal is stunned/immobilized through the dressing process to the point that the carcass is placed in refrigeration for cooling

• Aka, conversion of muscle to meat

What is Fabrication?

Process of taking a carcass and breaking it into smaller components and more useful end products for consumers

What were fabrication lines based off of?

Ford’s car assembly lines (~1915)

Meat products are divided into two categories: minimal processing and further processing. What determines where each product goes?

The degree of preparation applied to the product

What is minimal processing?

Changing the meat's physical form without substantially changing its composition

• Grinding, chopping, mixing

What is further processing?

Involves additional physical, chemical, or thermal processing of meat

• Curing, smoking, cooking

The two major classifications of meat processing refer to the ____ and ____ of processing aplied to the meat when merchandized to the consumer.

Amount, type

What is Sodium Nitrate used for?

Acts as a curing agent

• Improves food safety, extends shelf life, and to slows the development of rancidity

Why might some people be unhappy with the addition of Sodium Nitrate to their food?

Sodium Nitrite in food has been implicated by some researchers to be associated with certain types of cancer

What two industries are the largest segments of US argiculture?

Meat and Poultry

What are the top 3 meat and poultry companies?

1. Tyson Foods Inc.

2. Cargill Meat Solutions

3. ConAgra Foods Inc.

(T/F) Meat companies based in different countries operating within the US do not have to follow USDA regulation.

False